One dead, one wounded in deputy-involved shootout

PHOENIX — An early morning armed robbery at an Arizona adult boutique
Monday ended in a shootout with a sheriff’s deputy that left one suspect dead
and another injured, authorities said.

The two suspects entered the business at about 6 a.m., tied up a female
employee then fled with a safe and cash from the register, Pinal County Sheriff
Paul Babeu said.

The woman was able to escape and call 911 with a description of the suspects’
car.

A short time later, a Pinal County sheriff’s deputy spotted the vehicle on
Interstate 10 about 80 miles south of Phoenix and a chase ensued at speeds
exceeding 110 mph, authorities said.

The suspects turned off the interstate onto Highway 87 south of Eloy and
collided with the deputy’s vehicle in a field.

Babeu said the two suspects jumped out of their car and shot at the deputy, who
returned fire, killing one man and injuring another with gunshots to his leg and
arm.

The suspect still attempted to flee on foot, but the deputy was able to subdue
and arrest him.

The man was being treated at an area hospital.

Babeu said the safe was found unopened in the car, and the dead suspect had a
large amount of cash on him, likely taken from the boutique’s register.
Authorities also believe the suspects were monitoring the pursuit with their own
police scanner.

Babeu said the clerk at the store, which does brisk business just off I-10,
“is lucky to be alive.”

A person who answered the phone Monday at the M Passion Adult Boutique declined
comment.

An investigation was ongoing. The suspects’ names haven’t been released pending
notification of their families.

The deputy is a seven-year veteran of the force who is assigned to patrol but
also works for the agency’s SWAT and search and rescue teams.

His name and age hadn’t yet been released. Babeu called him a “model of
fitness and of discipline.”